Arrow Season 5 introduces its new team

If any show was in need of a fresh injection of new blood, it was Arrow. As much as we enjoy it, it’s hard to deny that it stuttered last season, with a misused central villain and mishmash of storylines proving to be an ill fit for it.

But it seems as if the show’s creators are well aware of this, with this first look at Season 5 showing Oliver (Stephen Amell) heeding Laurel’s deathbed advice (well, interpreting it, is probably more accurate) and recruiting a new team of younger vigilantes.

Some of them you will already be familiar with: Curtis Holt (Echo Kellum), promoted to series regular status for this year (and we dearly hope that he takes on his ‘Mr Terrific’ moniker from the comics, and Evelyn Sharp (Madison McLaughlin), who previously masqueraded as the Black Canary are both part of the team, as is newcomer Renee ‘Wild Dog’ Ramirez (Rick Gonzalez).

If you’re worried about the rest of the team, then don’t: Felicity (Emily Bett-Rickards), Thea (Willa Holland) and Diggle (David Ramsey) are all present and correct. While they likely won’t be part of the main team to begin with, we can’t imagine them staying out of trouble for too long, especially when Star City’s involved.

Furthermore, it looks like a new villain is in town. While we couldn’t recognise the red-clad archer at the end (those more in the know have pegged him as either Ragman or Prometheus), he looks suitably enigmatic. And where did he get all the red gear from? Questions upon questions…